Apparatus for treating hydrocarbons



Feb. 22, 1944. 1 STORMENT 2,342,380

APPARATUS FOR TREATING HYDROCARBONS Filed Jan. 3, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet l II HIHHIIIIIIIIII IHII II no A W l2 [2 6 FIG. 1

INVENTOR JOSEPH EjfsSTORMENT Feb. 22, 1944. E, ST RMENT 2,342,380

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FIG. 2

JOSEPH E. STO MENT B M a; 2M1";

of two or more bauxite chambers.

Patented Feb. 22, 1944 APPARATUS FORv TREATING HYDROCARBONS Joseph Edgar Storment, Bartlesvllle, Okla assignor to Phillips Petroleum Company, a corporation of Delaware Application January 3, 1942, Serial No. 425,580

(Jlaims.

- My invention relates to a means for performing in a continuous manner certain processes which have heretofore been conducted in alternate or intermittent cycles.

In the production of gasoline, for example, it is usually necessary at one time or another to pass the product through a scrubber, absorber or the like in order to remove water, sulphur, or some other impurity. I will take the well known method of drying gasoline by passing it over bauxite as an illustrative example wherein my in vention would be of great'value.

In drying gasoline by the bauxite process as now practiced, the gasoline is simply passed through a chamber containinga porous bed of bauxite, which latter material will absorb the water content of the gasoline and thus effect the desired separation. After a certain period of use, however, the bauxite becomes saturated with water and must be dried out by the application of heat.

The usual manner of operation involves the use One chamber is utilized until it becomes saturated, at which time it is disconnected from the line and a second one is placed in operation. The saturated chamber is then connected to a secondline and warm gases are passed therethrough. driving out the water and thus rejuvenating the bauxite for later re-use. Thus one chamber is always on stream and one or more others are in the process of restoration. The changeover from a spent chamber to a restored one at the appropriate time is accomplished by a multiplicity of manually operated valves.

My invention lies in providing automatic means to carry out this or similar processes in a continuous manner. Thus the flow of treated material need not be interrupted at any time. The labor formerly involved in changing the chambers is eliminated, and little or no supervision is required in the process. The objects of my invention are identified with the consummation of the advantages just recited.

In the drawings,

Figure 1 is a general elevational view of my device, an upper portion of which is semi-sectional.

Figure 2 is a cross section taken about the line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure'3 is a cross section taken about the line' 33 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a plan view of the piping layout at the inlet and/or outlet of the system shown in Figure 1. (The piping at these locations is identical.)

securely to the outside of the jacket.

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view oi! a refined formof the element illustrated in Figure 2.

In Figure 1, the numeral 5 indicates a plurality of chambers containing bauxite or other desired material. Surrounding these containers is a retaining shell 6, which has at its upper end a flange i. A cover 8 is provided with a companion flange 9 for attachment of the cover to the shell proper. A supporting ring ill and a gear H are attached The ring rests on rollers 52 which are mounted to any desired externally fixed supports, as posts bedded in the floor, for example. The ring, rollers and external support structure (latter shown diagrammatically) all cooperate to support the case b and its contents, and to permit easy rotation of the same as a unit. The ring gear II is adapted to mesh with either a pinion or a sprocket drive chain, in any case providing mechanical means to rotate the case assembly by some external prime mover, not shown.

At both ends of each chamber 5 are provided pipes I3, connecting the respective chambers to selector valve plates M which are welded or otherwise secured to the ends of the case 6. While this is shown only at the upper end of Figure 1,

it is to be understood that the arrangement of connections at top and bottom is identical. The plates i4 contain a suitable number of ports I5 as shown in Figure 3, so that the outer end of each pipe l3 will be received in one of said ports. The manner of connection between the chambers 5, and the plates I4 is illustrated in Figure 4, which is representative of both the inlet and'the outlet ends of the chambers.

A companion plate It is maintained in contact with each of the valve plates H by means of a shaft bolt IT, a spring 18 and adjustable take-up nut l9, as shown in Figure 1. Each plate It is provided with an opening 20 to receive a gasoline conduit 2i, 2l--A, and also with an opening 22 to receive a warm gas conduit 23, 23-A. The openings 20 and 22 communicate with arcuate channels 24 and 25, respectively, these channels being milled or otherwise formed in the faces of plates 16 which bear against plates 14. The form and arrangement of these arcuate channels are shown in further detail in Figure 2, in which it In. operation, water-moist gasoline is continually introduced through line 2|, for circulation through some of the bauxite-filled chambers 5 and withdrawn in a water-free condition through line 2l-A. At the same time warm gas is comtinually introduced .through line 23 for the purpose of drying out others of the bauxite filled chambers 5 and the gas and water vapors discharge through line 23-A.

For purposes of illustrating the flow of gasoline and of the warm gas, consider an instantaneous stationary condition of the case 6 and its contents. Two of the ports ii are closed oil? by the webs 26 and 21 in the plate It. and therefore, two of the chambers 5 are in astatic condition. These two chambers which are temporarily out of action would be diametrically opposite each other, and all other chambers would be disposed in equal numbers to the left and to the right of said inactive chambers. Those on the left (referring to Figure 1) would all be receiving wet gasoline from the line 2| via the port 20, the arcuate channel 24 and the pipes is which correspond to the respective chambers of the lefthand group. Discharge of dried gasoline (waterfree) would occur in a like manner through the line 2IA. Meanwhile warm gases are being passed through the right-hand group of chambers, entering from line 23 and exhausting into line 23-A, the intermediate path being through port 22 and channel 25.

From the foregoing description of the flow path in a stationary condition, the operation of the device when running is made clear. By applica-' tion of power to the ring gear II, the case 8 containing the chambers 5 will be slowly and con tinuously rotated. The valve plates I 4 rotate in unison with the case, while the plates l6 remain stationary, being restrained from motion by the rigid piping 23, 23-A, etc. Because 01' the continuous rotation of the chambers 5 and their terminal ports IS in the plates l4, each chamber will experience a long period during which gasoline is passed therethrough, a short period during which no flow occurs (when its port I! is opposite web 26 or 21) and then a long period during which warm gas flows through the chamber to efiect removal of water from the bauxite. Thus a continual process of gasoline dehydration :and also a continual process of bauxite reconditioning are carried on simultaneously and may be sustained indefinitely. It will never be necessary to shut down the flow of gasoline to remove watersaturated bauxite chambers from the line and replace them with dry ones, as has been done in the past. The better procedure or manually switching the flow from one line containing a saturated bauxite chamber to another line containing a dry one is also outmoded by my continuous automatic system herein disclosed. Consequently, a great saving in time, labor and'supervisory eflort is to be realized by its use.

I have chosen to illustrate my improvement in an elementary form, for the sake of clarity and simplification of the disclosure. It is obvious that certain refinements to the equipment may be accomplished with a corresponding increase in efliciency and effectiveness in the process. For example, it may be desirable to provide means for purging the chamberso! their gasoline content as they successivelychange over from the gasoline treating side of the system to the bauxite reconditioning side. Such an expedient would avoid the possibility of liquid gasoline aaaaao passing into the gas outlet line il-A of Figure 1. Otherwise, a trap or other device would be employed in line 23-A to recover the lost gasoline, or to prevent complete filling of the vapor side of the system in the event line 23-A were connected in recirculating disposition with inlet line 23. While the use of such a trap would be a feasible remedy for the situation, the same could be obviated by the arrangement shown in Figure 5.

In Figure 5 is illustrated an elaborated form of the valve plate l6, in which 20 and 22 are respectively the connections for lines 2| and 23 (or 2l-A and 23-A) as in Figures 1 and 2. The additional passages 28 and 29 are provided with connection terminals 30 and 3|, respectively. The passage 28, with its terminal 30, may be connected to a purging line for emptying the gasoline from the chambers 5 as they approach the vapor side of the system. The passage 25 and its terminal 3! may be utilized for a cooling cycle following the hot vapor cycle and preceding resumption of gasoline flow through the respective chambers.

The gasoline recovered during the purge cycle can be piped directly back into line 2l--A of Figure 1, or to a separate accumulation point, as the circumstances may require in a given installation.

The arrangement and number of inlets or outlets in the valve comprised of plates l4 and it are variable to suit the particular requirements of man different materials and processes. Where a process is composed of several major steps, intermediate purging or neutralizing cycles can be interspersed between them wherever it is desired to prevent intermixing of the materials and products of the respective major cycles. The length of operation of each cycle can be controlled by the lengths of the arcuate channels (as 24, 25, etc.) and also by the speed of rota tion of the chamber system.

Due to the method 01 construction of the valve plates l4 and I6, my device is adaptable to either low pressure processes or to high pressure ones. While the process discussed herein for illustrative purposes would be carried out at pressures only slightly above atmospheric, the equipment herein disclosed is not limited in this respect.

I claim:

1. In apparatus of the character described, the combination comprising a rotatable closed receptacle, a plurality of independent closed vessels for containing contact material, said vessels being within the receptacle and rotatable therewith, each vessel including an inlet and an outlet, means extending through the wall or the receptacle for supplying and discharging hydrocarbon-containing fluid into and from at least one of the vessels through the inlets and outlets,

respectively, thereof while simultaneously supplying and discharging fluid including reactivatlng material into and from at least one other 2. In apparatus of the character described, the I combination comprising a rototable closed receptacle, a plurality of independent closed vessels for containing contact material, said vessels being within the receptacle and rotatable therewith, each vessel including an inlet and an outlet, inlet and outlet passages in the receptacle communicating with corresponding inlets and outlets in the vessels, means for supplying and discharging hydrocarbon-containing fluid into and from at least one of the vessels through the corresponding inlet and outlet passages, respectively, and means operating simultaneously with said means for supplying and discharging fluid including reactivating material into and from at least one other of the vessels through the corresponding inlet and outlet passages, respectively, the foregoing means being constructed and arranged to supply and discharge hydrocarboncontaining fluid and fluid including reactivating material separately and at diflerent, times into and from each vessel during each complete revolution of the receptacle.

3. The combination in accordance with claim 2 wherein the various means recited therein are substantially fixed at all times.

4. In apparatus of the character described, the combination comprising a rotatable closed receptacle, a plurality of closed vessels within and rotatable with the receptacle for containing contact material, each of the vessels being independent of the other vessels and readily removable from the receptacle, an inlet and an outlet in each vessel, inlet and an outlet passages in the receptacle communicating with corresponding inlets and outlets in the vessels,'flxedly disposed means exterior the receptacle for supplying and discharging hydrocarbon-containing fluid into and from at least one of the vessels through corresponding inlet and outlet passages, respectively, and fixedly disposed means exterior the vessel operating simultaneously with said means for supplying and discharging fluid including reactivating material into and from at least one other of the vessels through the corresponding inlet and outlet passages, respectively, the foregoing means being constructed and arranged to supply and discharge hydrocarbon-containing fluid and fluid including reactivating material separately and at difierent times into and from each vessel during each complete revolution of the receptacle;

5. In apparatus of the character described, the combination comprising a shell including a substantially cylindrical vertical side wall, a top wall and a bottom wall, means engaging and circumscribing the side wall for supporting and permiting rotation of the shell about its vertical axis, a plurality of closed vessels within and rotatable with the shell for containing contact material, each of the vessels beingindependent of the other vessels and readily removable from the shell, an inlet and an outlet in each vessel, inlet passages in the top wall of the shell communicating with inlets in the vessels, outlet passages in the bottom wall communicating with outlets in the vessels, fixedly disposed means exterior the shell for supplying and discharging hydrocarbon-containing fluid into and from at least one of the vessels through corresponding inlet and outlet passages, respectively, and fixedly disposed means exterior the shell operating simultaneously with the preceding means for sup-- plying and discharging fluid including reactivating material into and from at least one other of the vessels through the corresponding inlet and outlet passages, respectively, the two last mentioned means being constructed and arranged to supply and discharge hydrocarboncontaining fluid and fluid including reactivating material separately and at difl'erent times into and from each vessel during each complete revolution of the vessel about its vertical axis.

JOSEPH EDGAR S'IORMENT. 

